Listen "José Guadalupe Posada"
Episode Synopsis
José Guadalupe Posada was a Mexican illustrator who worked in lithography and engraving, he was a very prolific image maker who completed an estimated 20,000 illustrations in his lifetime, with themes ranging from Día de los Muertos or Day of the Dead illustrations, political cartoons, popular illustrations, and daily life, as well as illustrations for “shocking” crime stories. He was also known to have created illustrations for a number of children’s books in the form of cheaply printed chapbooks with the printer Antonio Vanegas Arroyo, making them accessible to wide audiences. Yet despite his enduring legacy, his contributions are not often discussed in histories of graphic design, yet his story reveals a deep history of image making and mass production of images in Mexico, which includes the foundation of the Taller de Gráfica Popular, a collective founded by Leopoldo Méndez, Luis Arenal, and Pablo O’Higgins. Posada’s popular Day of the Dead icons, such as the Calavera Catrina, have captured the hearts and imaginations of many. Born in 1852 in Aguascalientes, Mexico, he made his way to Mexico City after a devastating flood upended his life. It is perhaps this move that allowed his work to be “discovered” by artists and historians after his untimely death in 1913. Though his work has been recognized by art historians, and he has been honored with a number of posthumous exhibitions of his work around the world, there is still work to be done to include his story in histories of graphic design. His images were geared to popular audiences, and a wide range of people had access to them and enjoyed them in his lifetime.TIMELINE1852 - Born, February 2, Aguascalientes, Mexico1860s - receives drawing instruction Municipal Academy of Drawing in Aguascalientes1867 - Census records Posada as a Painter1868 - Begins working with Trinidad Pedroza1871 - First political Cartoon published in El Jicote1872 - Pedroza and Posada move to León1876 - Takes charge of Pedroza print shop1888 - Moves to Mexico City1888-90 - collaborates with the newspaper La Patria Ilustrada and the Revisita de Mexico1910 - The Mexican Revolution begins1913 - Died, January 20, Mexico City, Mexico1920 - The Mexican Revolution ends1937 - Taller de Gráfica Popular, collective founded by Leopoldo Méndez, Luis Arenal, and Pablo O’HigginsREFERENCESAcosta, T. (2023, September 19). Dia de los Muertos: Its rich history, traditions and why not all Mexicans celebrate it. Arizona Republic. https://www.azcentral.com/story/entertainment/holidays/2023/09/19/origin-of-day-of-the-dead/70489251007/Aguilar Montes de Oca, R. I. (2016). The Day of the Dead: One Ritual, NewFolk Costumes, and Old Identities. Folklore (Tartu, Estonia), 66, 95.Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2023, October 19). León. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/place/Leon-MexicoBunker, S. B. (2012). Creating Mexican consumer culture in the age of Porfirio Díaz. University of New Mexico Press.Casillas, M. L. (2013). Posada & Manilla: Illustrations for Mexican Fairy Tales. RM.Doyle, S., Grove, J., & Whitney, S. (Eds.). (2019). History of Illustration. Fairchild Books.Frank, P. (1998). Posada’s Broadsides: Mexican popular imagery, 1890-1910. University of New Mexico Press.Greenspan, J. (2018, August 31). 6 things you may not know about the Mexican Revolution. HISTORY. https://www.history.com/news/6-things-you-may-not-know-about-the-mexican-revolutionKennedy, P. (2022, December 7). José Guadalupe Posada: Skulls, Skeletons and Macabre Mischief. Illustration Chronicles. https://illustrationchronicles.com/Jose-Guadalupe-Posada-Skulls-Skeletons-and-Macabre-MischiefLagasse, P., & Columbia University. (2018). Díaz, Porfirio. In The Columbia Encyclopedia. Columbia University Press.Mexican artist José Guadalupe Posada. (n.d.). Posada. https://www.posada-art-foundation.com/about-posadaMexico. (n.d.). RSF. https://rsf.org/en/country/mexicoRecalls Disaster of 1888.; HUGE WATER WALL HITS LEON, MEXICO. (1926, June 25). The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/1926/06/25/archives/recalls-disaster-of-1888-huge-water-wall-hits-leon-mexico.htmlShort biography — The Jean Charlot Foundation. (n.d.). The Jean Charlot Foundation. https://www.jeancharlot.org/short-biographyTaller de Gráfica Popular (Mexico City, Mexico) | The Art Institute of Chicago. (2001, July 4). The Art Institute of Chicago. https://www.artic.edu/artists/72887/taller-de-grafica-popular-mexico-city-mexicoTyler, R. (1979). Posada’s Mexico. Library of Congress.
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